Grand Illusion
by Maiokoe
Summary: She had opened herself up to him, allowed herself to be vulnerable. She bared her soul to him. Many had done so in the past, yes, either because of fear, possession, or—in Ken and Chikusa's case—loyalty. But she had done so willingly, something no one had ever done before. And a part of him warmed at that knowledge. A very small part. 6996


A/N: KHR! does not belong to me in the least~!

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Rokudo Mukuro wasn't a guy to care about others, especially not their feelings. He was hardly the kind of person who would cheer up his friends when they were down. It could be argued he had no friends. Which was true. He didn't have friends. He had followers, loyal to him and only him.

And then Nagi came along.

They were in the same boat, to say the least. She, dying with no hope of survival, and him, trapped in a place between the two. He hadn't expected her to hear him when he had found her in the darkness of his existence, but she had. She was special, like him. So he made her a deal and she accepted.

She lived and he remained in the same existence, silence and darkness. But every so often, when she dreamed, he could escape his world and enter hers. At first, she was afraid of him, of his power. As she very well should be. But by the third occasion, when he used some of his power to escape his new life, she had smiled at him and they spoke as if they were friends.

Her name was Nagi Fukui—he had to laugh a little at the irony—and she was thirteen. Her father died when she was six and her mother remarried a wealthy businessman three years ago. She wasn't fond of him. She didn't have many friends because she preferred to be alone. She hadn't thought she'd live through that and she still wasn't sure if she wanted to, but, she had so she would accept it. The cat had been her neighbor's and she had been watching it while they were away on vacation. It had gotten out and in her effort to bring him back, she hadn't noticed the car. She was hit and the cat got away unharmed.

She hadn't felt any pain and she was conscious for most of the ambulance ride and through the halls of the hospital. They all murmured encouraging words to her even though they knew she wouldn't make. When she was taken to the ICU, an oxygen mask over her mouth and IVs stuck to her arm in an effort to stabilize her until her parents arrived. They finally did and she had heard everything they had said. It hurt a little when her mother had said those things about her, but she knew they were true.

And then they left her to die, her stepfather too busy and her mother not caring enough to try to save her.

So, Mukuro was her savior and salvation. And she thanked him, adding that she hadn't until that moment.

That made him pause. This girl hadn't wanted to live, but he saved her life with a little bit of power and she was alive and well thanks to him. Still a little scared of him and the two hooligans loyal to him, but she was thankful. She hadn't really wanted to die, but she had accepted that nobody wanted her.

"Kufufufu… My dear Nagi, it's hardly anything to thank me for." Her hair was still long in his illusionary world, not the hairstyle Ken had so graciously granted her with. He'd punish him for that. Later. "And it's not as though it was a great effort for me."

"B-but Mukuro-sama… All the same…" He smiled at her and she looked away, pink staining her cheeks.

"Alright. Nagi, it's time for you to go." She nodded and he stepped back and away from her, something she was now accustomed to. He was leaving and she would return to her own world, either entering a dream or waking up. "Until the next time."

"G-good-bye, Mukuro-sama…"

He returned to the darkness and silence of his world, letting her return to the light. Soon, he would be free, like she was. but until that happy day arrived, he was trapped here in shadows. But here, he could think, as that was the only thing he was allowed. He did a lot of thinking in this prison, mostly about Sawada Tsunayoshi and what he would do when he left this place.

But every so often, he thought of Ken and Chikusa. It would be laughable for him to say they were his friends for they were merely tools to further his goal. They knew that and accepted it, following his every command, even willing to sacrifice their lives for him.

But that wasn't exactly true either. They were the people closest to him and he realized that they weren't just merely tools. When he had told them to split up from him, he was protecting them in his own way. Vindice didn't really care about them, it was he they wanted. They couldn't handle this place, not like he could. It would be the Estraneo Family all over again for them. But he could take their place and be strong. He had survived, after-all, always had. He _thrived_ in situations in which there appeared to be no escape.

In a way, they were his friends. But he would never tell them that.

And Nagi… No, Chrome, as she decided to call herself. What did he think of her? She was useful and easily manipulated. She was loyal to him, he saved her life after-all. She might even have feelings for him, something he realized not too long ago.

But she had opened herself up to him, allowed herself to be vulnerable. She bared her soul to him. Many had done so in the past, yes, either because of fear, possession, or—in Ken and Chikusa's case—loyalty. But she had done so willingly, something no one had ever done before. And a part of him warmed at that knowledge. A very small part.

He supposed he should just observe for now and make a decision regarding the newest member of the Kokuyo gang at a later date. Perhaps when he was finally out into the light with his friends.

But until that time, everything would be shrouded in mist and hidden from the eyes of the world.


End file.
